


The Storm (or: he should know better by now, but somehow he has no doubts)

by penink



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: I know it was fanservice but come on, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Scisaac Week, at least for the first thousand words or so, basically i wrote this whole thing because I wanted an answer, derek i love you but you messed up bad, i do not know how to write romance, if you could even call this that, isaac centric, its more like soft awkward mutual pining with a hint of trauma, scott is too good for this world, this is kind of an isaac character study, to why isaac walked to scott's house in a T SHIRT, when he was literally wearing that cute cardigan in the last scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-02
Updated: 2019-11-02
Packaged: 2021-01-16 21:10:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,050
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21277784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/penink/pseuds/penink
Summary: Isaac is kicked out by Derek and has nowhere to go, but he trusts Scott enough to start walking his way.





	The Storm (or: he should know better by now, but somehow he has no doubts)

“I don’t get it,” Isaac was at a loss. Derek had packed all of his stuff into his bag and told him he couldn’t stay there anymore. It was somehow both absurd and exactly what he had expected, for Derek to get sick of him and kick him out. Still, Isaac’s only remaining question was _why_. “Did something happen?”

Derek wouldn’t even look at him, “it’s just not gonna work with both of you here. I’ve got Cora now, it’s too much.” 

Okay, that surprised him. Isaac had expected Derek to simply be cruel, not have an actual justification for it. Somehow that hurt worse. Isaac was growing irritated now, he wanted to lash out, to shout at Derek, to let him know he wouldn’t be abandoned so easily. Memories of fear held him back, like always. 

“I need you out tonight.” 

Those words left a sinking feeling in Isaac’s gut. He felt frozen by the fact that this was happening _now_, there would be no discussion, no second chances. Isaac didn’t know what he should’ve expected, history goes to show that this is always, _always_ where he would end up. 

“Where am I supposed to go?” Isaac laughed over his rising anxiety, because surely this had to be a joke. 

“Somewhere else.” Derek wasn’t soft in the way he led them, but he was never downright ruthless, or at least never this uncaring. Derek was supposed to be angry, he wasn’t supposed to not feel anything at all. 

Isaac was trying to pretend he wasn’t getting scared, he was trying to pretend that there was a way back from this. A familiar question found its way into the loft. “Did I do something wrong, Derek?” 

Derek finally turned to face him and Isaac didn’t know what he expected to see there. Regret? Anger? Derek simply looked… _annoyed_. Isaac had gotten good enough at reading people by now to know there was something more there. Of course, he wouldn’t be around to find out what that was. 

“You’re doing something wrong by not leaving right now,” Derek pointed to the door, somehow expecting Isaac to just pick up his bag and leave. 

“Oh, come on,” Isaac couldn’t believe this. How could this not just be some cruel joke? Isaac had _left_ his dad’s house. Derek had promised him that he wouldn’t have to deal with things like this anymore. 

“Get out,” Derek didn’t even let him speak. 

“Derek, please,” Isaac tried not to fall so low as to plead with him, but he was getting really scared now. Derek was coming closer to him and Isaac felt the urge to back away from him. Derek had been the one to promise he wouldn’t need to be afraid like that. 

“Get out!” Derek was cold beyond cold. Isaac had always known Derek wasn’t a guardian, or even a friend, but whatever mutual respect they had shared was gone. 

“Come on-” 

“Go!” 

Isaac saw Derek raise his arm, glass in hand, and immediately knew to duck and cover his head. Isaac was well practiced in the action, but he had never expected to do it again. Isaac paused, still trying to protect himself, refusing to turn around, wondering if next Derek would hit him. When Derek didn’t move, Isaac turned back to him, knowing his eyes were watering. Isaac grabbed his bag from the floor and turned to leave. The silence in the loft now was brutal, Isaac turned back and for a moment he thought he saw Derek hesitate. 

Derek did not need to shut the door on him, Isaac fled the loft on his own, bits of glass still in his hair. Isaac was shaking. He didn’t realize it until he was in the first floor lobby with a duffle bag at his side and not much else. It was the kind of pins and needles all over his skin, a certain numbness, that Isaac could only associate with a panic attack. _Where am I supposed to go?_ This fear wasn’t an unfamiliar feeling, but it didn’t exactly get easier. Isaac was so angry with himself, perhaps even more than he was scared. What was he _thinking?_ Getting comfortable somewhere, actually expecting someone to not mind having him around. 

Isaac could drown in his own misery later, right now he had to figure out how he was going to avoid drowning in this storm. Had it been intentional? Derek insisting on him leaving on a night with the worst possible weather, was it a punishment? _Focus, Isaac, you’ve been through this before._ Isaac shook out his hands, trying to stop them from shaking. His heart was still beating way too fast but that surely had more to do with the glass shattering above his head. If Derek _had_ wanted to hurt him, he sure did a good job of it. 

Isaac stared out the glass doors of the building to the sheets of rain coming down. And it was getting cold out, it was probably in the 50s now and would only be getting colder tonight. Isaac had to think about this logically. Boyd had said that his parents would never let Isaac hang out at his house, the whole murder-suspect thing still hung in the air, so Boyd was a no-go. Even if he snuck in, he couldn’t put that burden on him. _Fuck._ Isaac really didn’t have anyone. Isaac tried to keep up that tough facade but really he was terrified. Isaac didn’t want to be homeless, how was he supposed to help anyone if he wouldn’t even be able to feed himself? He and Scott had been trying so hard to do this together, Isaac didn’t want to abandon him- 

Scott. Scott would help him- _no_, no, he _might_ help him. Isaac couldn’t be that naive again to think that Scott would take him in with open arms, Scott was a good guy, better than him, at least, but this was a huge favor to ask. Okay, so he had a destination in mind. What now? Did he call Scott? No, because that would mean Scott thinking he had to drive over to Derek’s in this weather, it meant more pressure on Scott, it might even mean a confrontation if Scott decided he needed to have words with Derek. 

Okay, so he would walk to the bus stop, get a ride to the suburbs, and walk to Scott’s house. A plan finally set, Isaac moved to leave. A pause. Isaac looked down at what he was wearing and then at the weather outside. If Scott said no, he’d be screwed. This cardigan was the warmest thing he owned and if it got soaked and he was stuck sleeping under a bridge somewhere… 

It would be a cold walk, but better that than freezing to death later in the night. Isaac was bottling all of his anger at Derek, his fear of where the hell he was going, and replacing it with a cold logic he had used to survive his father. Isaac took off his cardigan, shoved it in his duffle bag, it seemed like water wouldn’t soak through the bag, which was the only good thing going for him right now. Isaac put his phone in the bag as well. Isaac stared out at the street once more. The rain was so thick Isaac could barely see to the end of a block, if he’d been human he couldn’t have seen more than a few yards in front of him. Isaac gritted his teeth and stepped out into the storm. 

Of course it was cold out. Of course the fucking wind was blowing the rain into his face. He wasn’t sure if he was properly crying or not, Isaac bit his lip, holding back a sob as the full gravity of the situation finally hit him. Derek had kicked him out. Isaac wasn’t even sure if the state knew where he was or if Derek even had custody of him. It hadn’t seemed to matter when he had a pack. God, what did this mean for him as a werewolf? Derek was the alpha, he had kicked him out, Erica was _dead_, Boyd was… not coping well, so where did that leave him? Isaac’s anger grew along with his frustration and fear. Derek had _promised_ him. He’d told him all this bullshit about how he wouldn’t be alone anymore, how they would protect each other. 

Isaac was soaked to the skin and shivering uncontrollably. He hadn’t felt this cold since the ice bath. He was grateful that the bus stop had an overhang he could huddle under, he shook some of the water off his hand since his clothes were too drenched to dry it on and checked his phone. It was almost 10 pm. This would be the last bus to run until 11. Isaac felt some level of relief, he could’ve been stuck out there for another hour. Isaac, standing alone on a dark street, the only light coming from the lampost beside the bus stop, realized there was more out there to be afraid of than the cold. 

Who’s to say the twins weren’t watching Derek’s loft? That they hadn’t seen him leave, alone and clearly not returning to the loft any time soon? They could be tailing him right now, waiting for him to get away from the city so they could attack him somewhere quiet. Isaac couldn’t listen for them or try and smell them with all this rain. If they did tear him apart, at least that would show Derek what an asshole he was. However satisfying that would be, he also was aware that the twins might not just tear into him a bit, they could very well kill him. Isaac wondered if the twins would dump his body off at Derek’s or if they’d leave him on the street for some terrified civilian to find. 

Or even worse, they might drag him back to the bank, or whatever hellhole they were camped out in now, torture him again, keep him there for months like they had done to his pack. Isaac had very vague memories of the bank even now, but he knew enough to know returning there would not be painless. Isaac was relieved to get off the street and inside the bus, even if he knew he would be walking in the rain again in twenty minutes. Isaac sat at the back, his bag cradled to his chest. The weak heating coming through the vents let him relax for a moment, even if he was still left spiraling down a dozen terrible outcomes and unanswerable questions. Scott would help him, surely? Isaac felt himself being pulled further and further down into this sense of hopelessness, but Scott, his inherent goodness, his willingness to do the right thing, was just enough to keep Isaac stable. Almost like an anchor. 

The rain had not let up at all once he reached the suburbs. Isaac did not feel safe from whatever member of the alpha pack might be watching him, they didn’t need to take a bus to follow him this far. Isaac finally saw the McCall house, the front light was on and so was the light in Scott’s room. Despite all this fear and cold, Isaac still hesitated on the porch, he hated the idea of being a burden. The door actually opened before he could ring the bell. 

“Isaac?” Ms. McCall seemed absolutely baffled by the sight of him. “What are you doing here? Are you okay?” 

“Can-” Isaac wasn’t exactly composed. “Can I-” 

“Get inside, you’ve got to be freezing,” Melissa ushered him in, Isaac felt oddly numb now. He hadn’t expected sympathy. He hadn’t even explained what had happened. 

“I need to see Scott,” he mumbled. 

“He’s in his room,” Melissa pointed upstairs. She didn’t seem to care that a random teenager was dripping water all over her floors. Isaac nodded in thanks, unable to trust himself to speak. He stood outside Scott’s door, pulling himself together enough that he wasn’t a shaky mess, and knocked. 

“Come in, mom,” Scott called over his shoulder. 

Isaac hesitated, just inside Scott’s room, Scott stared at him, confused and surprised, but not upset with him being there. 

“I was wondering if I could ask you a favor,” Isaac said. 

“What happened?” Scott stood, shutting the door behind Isaac. “Are Cora and Derek okay? Did the alpha pack go back to the loft?” 

“N-No,” Isaac said. “They’re fine.” 

Scott stared at him, eyebrows furrowed in worry, waiting for an explanation. 

“Can I-” This was the bit Isaac was most afraid of. This decided if he would be walking in the rain again or safe for the night. “Can I stay here? Please, I just- I don’t want to be out alone tonight, and I promise I won’t bother you-” 

“Isaac,” Scott cut off his nervous rambling. “You’re staying here, okay? It’s not even a question. Now tell me what’s happened?” 

Isaac felt himself relax, finally able to just pause without worrying if he would make it through the night. It was like Scott had lifted some terrible weight from his shoulders. 

“Derek-” 

Scott cut him off unthinkingly, “wait, you’ve got to be freezing, you’re soaked-” he ran into his ensuite and came back with a towel which he reached up to wrap around the shoulders of his taller friend. “Sit down,” Scott all but pushed him into his desk chair where he had been sitting before. 

Isaac still felt oddly numbed and shocked, but the weight of the towel around his shoulders helped him think clearly. “Derek said I couldn’t stay with him anymore.” 

“_What?_” Scott blustered. “What’re you talking about- wait, you mean Derek _kicked you out_?” 

“I mean, yeah, but-” 

“Dude, don’t try and explain things for him, what the hell was he thinking?!” Scott paced the length of his bedroom. “How did you even _get_ here?” 

“Walked. And took the bus,” Isaac pulled the towel tighter around himself. He was still shivering and a pool of water was forming around his shoes. 

“You-” Scott cut himself off, realizing that there wasn’t really any _other_ way Isaac could have gotten here. Scott paused, taking a moment to settle his anger that was clearly keeping Isaac on edge. “Let me get you something dry to wear.” 

“You don’t have to-” 

Scott was already going through his drawers, pulling out flannel pajama bottoms that would be a few inches too short and an oversized t-shirt. Isaac accepted them gratefully. A pause, Isaac holding onto the dry clothes and Scott just standing there. 

“Oh!” Scott caught on, “you can, uh, you can get changed in my bathroom.” Scott was blushing and Isaac wasn’t sure why. He also wasn’t sure why he was blushing too. 

Isaac returned from the bathroom, grabbing the towel to try and dry his hair. “Ow!” Isaac dropped the towel, hand going to a dab of blood from a tiny cut on his head that was already healing. 

“What?!” Scott, who had gone to put Isaac’s clothes in the drier, returned in a panic. 

“Nothing,” Isaac muttered, staring at his hand and the bit of glass he had found just by running his hands through his hair. 

“Is that _blood?_” Scott was oblivious at the most inconvenient times. This was not one of them. 

“It’s nothing, I’m fine.” 

“Isaac, what happened?” Scott said. “Come on, man, just tell me.” 

“There’s-” Isaac was avoidant. Part of him hated Scott’s concern because by now, _especially_ now, he knew not to trust it. “There’s glass in my hair,” he half said it under his breath as if that way he could change the subject. 

Scott said nothing for a moment. Isaac feared it would be a negative reaction, but really Scott felt sick with worry. Isaac deserved better, and Scott intended to prove that. Scott could also guess why, but he had to ask. “Isaac… why is there glass in your hair?” 

Isaac broke down. All of the adrenaline from the past hours finally faded enough that that pain caught up with him. He sat on the edge of Scott’s bed, head in his hands. It was like he was choking, holding back sobs that he didn’t feel entitled to. His voice shook but he couldn’t help but let the words pour out of him in a rambling wave, “I think I fucked up, Scott. I did something wrong, I _had_ to have- Derek- He- He was so mad, I don’t know what I did, I don’t know what I did-” 

“Isaac, please,” Scott sat beside him, a hand on his shoulder. “This wasn’t your fault. Don’t think that this was your fault.” 

Isaac struggled to believe him, but Scott’s presence helped him breathe again. “I don’t know why he did this,” Isaac spoke softly, as if afraid of being heard. 

Scott could never imagine Derek sinking so low, but he had to ask. “Isaac, did he hit you?” 

“No,” Isaac said quickly. “No, he didn’t touch me. He… well, he threw a glass at me.” 

Scott was more upset by the fact that somehow Isaac thought that was less deplorable than by the event itself, that somehow Isaac thought that it wasn’t so bad because Derek didn’t directly hit him. Scott wanted to give Derek hell for it too, but he knew Isaac didn’t need another fight right now. Isaac brushed through his hair, wincing as he blindly looked for the glass, cutting into his hand again. Isaac’s hands were shaking, Scott could see it, but he didn’t point it out. 

“Do you want me to help you?” Scott asked. 

“Help me?” 

“Get it out, I mean. Get the glass out of your hair,” Scott clarified. 

“Scott… come on, you-” 

“Let me help you, please? You’ve dealt with enough bullshit for one night,” Scott pushed gently because he knew Isaac would feel obligated to say no. 

Isaac eventually nodded. Scott stood on his bed, kneeling behind Isaac. He hesitated for a moment, seeing how Isaac tensed with him standing so close. Still a little unsure of himself, he started brushing his hands carefully through Isaac’s hair. It was… strange. Not bad or necessarily uncomfortable, but there was something intimate about it. And Scott couldn’t help getting distracted by how nice Isaac smelled underneath the rainwater. Scott had to occupy himself, he couldn’t just sit in silence and toy with Isaac’s curls. 

“So, uh, why didn’t you wear a jacket walking over here?” He reached for a topic. “It’s freezing outside, why’d you walk in a t-shirt?” 

“Didn’t want it to get wet.” 

“...why?” Scott got too distracted and he felt Isaac wince as more glass was tugged away from his skin. “Oh, sorry!” Scott had to be more careful. 

“Don’t worry about it,” Isaac shrugged, a certain peace, almost a drowsiness after so much panic, left Isaac more focused on Scott’s touch than the actual goal. 

“So, why?” Scott didn’t let him worm out of the question. 

“Oh, well, if I needed to find somewhere to sleep, I’d still have something warm to wear. It’d suck even more, otherwise,” Isaac was far too nonchalant. 

Scott paused, it finally processing what Isaac had said. “Wait- you actually thought I might say no?!” Isaac’s silence spoke for itself. “You’ve thought about this before, haven’t you?” Isaac didn’t know what to say. “Where else would you have _gone?_” 

Isaac wasn’t sure if he was being rhetorical or not. He decided on the latter. “I mean, there’s a spot under the bridge over on 12th, there’s a gazebo at a park like two blocks from my old house, but that was if I thought my dad might break my bike. There’s a 24 hours laundromat, but it’s like a two hour walk. I might’ve stayed at the bus station. It had cover. And… I think if you’d said no I probably would’ve broken into my old house.” 

Scott felt a lump form in his throat that he couldn’t quite explain. Almost guilt. “Isaac, what about the police station?” 

“How would that help me now?” 

“I meant then.” 

A pause, Isaac realizing where Scott’s mind had gone, no longer worried for the Isaac who had just fled from Derek’s loft, and instead wandering back to the boy who had clearly contemplated running more than once in his life. 

Isaac winced again as Scott’s clumsiness left glass falling onto his face. “Y’know, you’re not very good at this.” 

“Better than you doing it blind,” Scott frowned. “Could you try to hold still? I think most of it’s gone.” 

“It’s a 30 minute bike ride from my old house, the sheriff’s station, I mean,” Isaac continued, first clinically. A pause, “but I wouldn’t risk it. I never did.” 

Scott wasn’t finding any more glass in Isaac’s hair, but he didn’t stop brushing through it, he couldn’t explain why, he just needed Isaac to know that he deserved kindness even if he couldn’t say it with words. Scott thought Isaac was so cold and Isaac in turn was surprised by how warm Scott was every time they brushed against one another. 

“Why?” Scott finally spoke, the ache in his chest shown clearly through the slight tremor of his words. 

Isaac stopped to think, trying to figure out how to explain to Scott why he couldn’t just go get help. “No one ever believed me. Or asked questions. My dad said even if they were concerned, I’d still have to go home with him, and he’d make sure I wouldn’t live to see help. I never risked the sheriffs station.” 

Scott tried not to pause on the fact that Isaac fully expected his father to kill him, unsure of how to cope with that, and instead tried to push for more information, “but you _did_ leave your dad?” 

“Yeah, only for a night at a time. I’d either run for it ‘cause it was really bad that night, or he’d lock me out and I’d have no choice.” 

“...and you’d go back?” 

“Scott, weren’t you listening? Where was I supposed to _go_?” 

Scott sat down beside him again, close enough that their shoulders were touching. Isaac didn’t pull away so Scott leaned in closer, resting his head on Isaac’s shoulder. He wanted to say something that could fix this. He wanted to take away those memories and fears that Isaac still had tied around his neck. He searched for something, _anything_ to tell him. “I’m glad you came here, Isaac.” 

Isaac didn’t move and Scott couldn’t imagine what he was thinking. Isaac in turn was struggling to find a response to Scott’s declaration. “Thanks for letting me.” 

Scott looked at him with a strange intensity, too much honesty and heart in those eyes, too much for Isaac to understand. “Isaac… I would never say no to you,” silence, Scott turning red and pulling away ever so slightly. Scott didn’t know why Isaac left him just a little uneasy, but in a good way. A way he couldn’t quite explain. He hadn’t expected this turn of events, for Isaac to be here, and the reasons why left him more angry than anything, but Scott couldn’t help but feel some sense of pride, some sense of relief, that Isaac had felt like he could come here. Scott knew he was still staring, even though Isaac didn’t stop either. Scott spoke just as Isaac did. “I mean- not to something like this, you know-” 

“I’m sorry, I’ll try and find somewhere else, I can be gone in a few days-” 

“Don’t be.” 

“What?” 

“Don’t... don’t be gone in a few days. Don’t leave.” 

Isaac looked at him, trying to find some reason to believe Scott behind those eyes. Brown. So warm and so incredibly human despite Isaac knowing they were nothing but. Everything about him radiated safety in a way Isaac couldn’t quite place, a feeling of calm he couldn’t remember. Isaac had never fully convinced himself that he had a home with Derek, maybe he had gotten too invested, but he hadn’t been stupid enough to believe that was permanent, that it was secure. Isaac had no reason to believe this would be different, no reason except Scott McCall.

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! If you liked this, I recommend you check out my other teen wolf fics! The first being 'In Which Isaac Lahey Finally Gets Some Fucking Therapy' if that tells you anything.  
Thanks for reading!


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